Ontario County gives final OK on landfill taking more trash

Three supervisors voted against the move, which will bring up to 49 percent more trash to he Flint landfill each day.

Julie Sherwood

More trash, more cash.

The Ontario County Board of Supervisors gave final approval Thursday to Casella Waste Systems Inc.’s proposal to increase its intake of trash at the county landfill on Routes 5 and 20 in Flint from 2,000 to 2,999 tons per day. In return, the county will receive an additional $1 million a year, plus another $1 million over five years.

Three of the 21 supervisors voted against the 49 percent increase: Lloyd Kinnear, R-Canandaigua; Mary Luckern, D-town of Geneva; and Norm Teed, R-Phelps.

Teed expressed concern about Casella dumping trash in Ontario County from all over the Northeast, and questioned whether the landfill would fill up before the county’s contract with Casella expires in 2028.

Luckern expressed concern over increased truck traffic. Kinnear said he didn’t support it because the increase will create more methane gas than the gas-to-electricity plant on the site — or the New York State Electric and Gas Corp. grid — can handle.

Before the vote, Seneca Castle resident Jill McLellan expressed her opposition to the increase, citing concerns over possible effects on groundwater quality and tourism.

Supervisor Don Jensen, R-Seneca, said after the meeting that discussions are under way to see if the county and Casella can come to an agreement with Empire State Pipeline — a natural-gas pipeline project crossing Ontario County — to use the methane gas.

Casella has said it will burn the excess methane gas with flares only as a last resort. Converting the gas from decaying garbage to electricity is more desirable than burning it because it eliminates most of the odor and recycles the gas into a useful product.

Daily Messenger writer Julie Sherwood can be reached at (585) 394-0770, Ext. 263, or at jsherwood@mpnewspapers.com.